OSLO, Norway – 2016 Olympic champion and 2020 Olympic bronze medalist Helen Maroulis showed grit and persistence in winning her semifinals match at 57 kg and earning a spot in the gold-medal match at the Senior World Championships on Wednesday.
Maroulis, who came in as the No. 4 seed at 57 kg, faced a talented young star, 2019 U23 World champion and two-time Junior World champion Sae Nanjo of Japan in the semifinals. After falling behind in the first period, Maroulis emerged with a hard-fought 6-4 victory.
Maroulis was leading a 1-0 match after a shot clock point, but Nanjo was able to score a four-point takedown at the edge of the mat with under a minute to go in the first period to make the score 4-1. Maroulis found momentum going into the break however, scoring a counter takedown to get the match to within a point after three minutes. Continue reading at xxx →